Mrs. Hannon's First Grade Fly on the Wall 

On Fat Tuesday we always celebrate our last hurrah before Lent with an all-school Mardi Gras. We have a parade, followed by classroom games and prizes. It is wonderful…and exhausting. My game (as I age I may need to change it) is a ping pong toss, so I spend most of my time chasing ping pong balls which missed the buckets, around the room (thus my exhaustion). It’s a good work out! I was too busy chasing the ping pong balls to get an actual photo of the game, but here are some of the parade.

Following our Mardi Gras games we quietly gathered in the gym, singing Alleluia along the way. We were then silent for the burying of the Alleluia which won’t be spoken until Easter. We also worked hard to make Lenten sacrifices/promises. Our promises were written on crosses, blessed at Mass, and are on display in our classroom to remind us to persevere with our promises.

 

Here are a few photos from our fun day. We had our regular lessons in the morning, but in the afternoon the parade came passing by, followed by a school full of fun and games! After the games, we sang “Alleluia” for the last time until Easter, walking to the gym for the burial ceremony.

 

Our Mardi Gras parade and games are so much fun. Ash Wednesday and Lent are very special times for us. I am always moved by the way first graders illustrate the Stations of the Cross, and learn how to apply the Stations to their own lives.

Ash Wednesday self-portraits. We also made small rosaries and learned about the Rosary by coloring a bead each day.

Not necessarily in order of the Stations…:)..but here are some sweet examples:

 

 

We welcomed March and with all the terrible tornado devastation in southern Indiana, it certainly came in like a lion.  We are working on a weather-related theme (last week and continuing this week at least).  We discussed the meaning of the saying “March comes in like a lion and goes out like a lamb” as it relates to the weather, but also Jesus.  We came up with adjectives to describe lions such as loud, strong, proud, fearful,  and also for lambs such as gentle, soft, kind, and loving.  We learned that Jesus had to be strong and proud (as is shown in this weekend’s reading when he chased the moneychangers out of the temple), but was also gentle and kind (and is referred to as the lamb of God), especially to those who were marginalized by others.  The first graders made AWESOME two-sided lions and lambs and they are hung in the hallway outside of our classroom. 

We wrote our Lenten promises/sacrifices on the back of hearts and had them blessed at Mass.  They are hung so our promises remain private (unless we choose to share).  We are coloring one space per day on a Lenten journey map, and removing a thorn from our crowns each day we stay true to our promise.  Here are Collin’s and Sophie’s crowns.